Worklog Xii-Boy Pocket (V2 "Plus") by Xenii

[Luigid]

hi guys, I took steps to replicate xenii's project, moreover I thank him, an extremely helpful person who also helped me with the 3D files (inserting them on jlc gave me the problem that they were too small) and created a 3D model specifically for me.I ordered everything at 360° (just yesterday) but I currently have a black Wii + LCD and management board. so enough to be able to start the whole circle of trimming and testing the board.

I will post updates as time goes by. the project will be 90% the same as yours with some changes

 

[Xenii]

Wow this is amazing !
I’m glad you’re making a XB2 !
I’m so excited to see the final result !

All the best !

 

[Luigid]

the LCD arrived and it works (luckily lol), a big thank you to xenii since jlc is making a fuss about the flat cable...

 

[Luigid]

first packages... same day full mouser and aliexpress, I'm waiting hopefully before the JLC holidays so we can start doing something, there are a myriad of components it will take a day just to understand where they go

 

[Luigid]

hi guys little screen test that decided to burn the main integrated circuit for no reason...


the 3.3v mod is anticipated

 

[Luigid]

Hi guys, it's been a while including Christmas, I thank xenii again who is giving me so much support on discord
Since so many things have happened I'll go in order...

1. PMS --> initially I had no voltage on the vsys and obviously it didn't turn on... but I managed to program it and it was ok, in the end I had the ICs soldered badly (the tin had not connected the ICs to the board) I recommend even if under vacuum to tin both the ic that the board before hot air soldering them.
   (I also had the 5v which showed 4v due to the feedback inductance always being badly soldered + 1.15v was always 0v due to the poorly soldered IC..
   so the pms works and I have my voltage perfect...
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. I tried to insert the LCD into the case but it didn't fit, it was too "big" I had to sacrifice the edge inside the case on the upper part and on the sides in the lower part where the flat cable of the display came out,now it fits well and is flush, only the upper part tends to swell the plastic slightly but once assembled on the main body it practically vanishes (I'll make other adjustments eventually)

1. start of preparation of LCD board with SMD crystal + inductor - removal of connectors , everything seems ok. compared to xenii I see that the board only needs 3.3v and 1.8v to work (5v is not necessary) but I will check better once assembled
   (the large inductances need to be removed but I currently keep them for testing LCDs only with 3.3v, just inject it on the first inductance at the bottom right)
   
   
   
   
   
2. again for the case the upper pcb of the lz rz keys was not aligned with the holes.. I had to trim the board a bit to get it aligned well, the keys are pressed and it seems to work even if the sensation is not exactly perfect, I will work on it before complete the "work"
   
   
   
3. now having the pms working I couldn't back out of the trim...

obviously I'm going to test and... video but the screen remains black no rvloader written... (excellent) I think it's still glass paper
I notice the damage done to cut the card but I realize that those tracks end up in nothing once the trim is done so the damage can't be that....

and in fact here it is! I have no idea when and how he did it as he also put a protective layer on the board...

It would seem like gameover for this board

I started to check the damage better... 8 tracks (I aimed really well I must say...)

I started with a "quick" test (all evening...) stretching the tracks from one point to another... but xenii's words echoed in my head "the impedance is not the same so the console could be unstable "

I shortened the repair to the same length as the original tracks.... as a result the board is breathing again and I have my nice message from the rvloader!
the bad news is that the card is too big for the case and needs to be cut again... today it got late and I didn't feel like killing it again lol

 

[Xenii]

Wow great progress!

For the screen I voluntary use 5V to avoid too many things to be plugged to the 3.3V which is probably not enough powerful there to power almost entirely the screen.

For the Wii itself, yes you must have a “small” OMGWTF trim, otherwise, like you saw, it doesn't fit at all.

Thanks for the feedbacks about the case problem you had, I’ll see what’s going on and publish some new version which should correct the problems. I didn’t have these problems so I don’t really understand what’s wrong, but I’ll do my best to correct them.

 

[Luigid]

after speaking with xenii he confirmed to me that an advanced trim must be carried out compared to the guide making the card even smaller, so another sigh and off to cutting

on the vga signals we have original 6v these are 2.5v (the ps2 are 4v) I should do some tests (removed from old PCs it doesn't matter if they get ruined but they are ok tested) the latest 16v is instead 6.3v, it is on the rail for I don't think the audio integrated circuit is powered at a voltage greater than 3.3v (also because we are supplying those voltages to the board...) so at least this should be ok, doubtful only on the VGA ones (which then the signals can be taken directly from the chip but I would like to make a comparison with the original line vs directly from the chip to see the differences)

 

[Luigid]

hi guys and happy new year! some pretty good updates!

small continuous with wiring of the rz and lz keys, in the end, being at this point more than halfway through the work, I decided to dedicate myself to their function as well. in the end I adapted the same keys used for l and r and the result was very good!
the temperature sensor for the fan circuit stuck after beveling it a little + thermal pad.

and that was how my goal was achieved! Don't spend the end of year dinner boring and here is Mario Kart at the kitchen table!

before trying the SD I had to remove a small ball of tin, a nice scalpel helped to avoid causing damage and reassemble the board to desolder it!

obviously there are some considerations:

1. i miss the ic for audio... (re ordered..)
   
2. the speakers are yet to arrived even if without the IC they were of little use lol
3. the custom flat calbe (xii-flex) should arrive within a few days, hopefully for the weekend, so it's impossible to use/test wifi and BT modules, same thing without flex I had to wire everything up quickly with cables (data+ and - for the microsd and data for the controller)
4. the battery slot is a little too small and it is difficult to insert the batteries, this is very dangerous given that on the positive side you risk scratching the external layer and short-circuiting it with its mass (explosion risk), I will cut to the case well and I will glue them to the same. for the electrical contact I will solder them (also because the larger cells that I keep are protected and therefore longer than the normal ones, but I have problems with those too so this modification always had to be made)
5. for the USB I think I will install another USB C which I will convert externally with an adapter to standard USB, a type A USB could be physically installed, but the card would have to be cut out and I don't want to play with it to kill it in any way
   
6. the copper plate that should arrive is also missing (a steel one was used, cut as best as possible and hammered to flatten it....)
   btw happy new year!

 

[Luigid]

good news! let's say (lol)
the flat has arrived and it is very good! fortunately the modification made by xenii for me (jlc didn't like one of the holes near the cpu...) but I see that it is actually very centered so perfect!

I had to change the 3.3v point since it is covered by the flat but nothing serious, final result!

Don't mind the video cables they are temporary haha
good thing everything works except bluetoot... if I activate it the game remains on a black screen, with wifi only the game works! (although I have to figure out - remember how to test it properly....)
at the moment I'm also modifying the battery compartment for the protected 18650s, we're still at the end of the line without the audio IC, there's no point in dismantling everything to check the BT, so I'll probably do everything in about 1 month when the rest of the goods arrive

 

[Luigid]

good news! The speakers arrived and were immediately installed. Seeing them "naked", the idea of leaving them like that didn't drive me crazy also because it's very easy for dust and ferrous residues to damage them, so I used a very fine and labile fabric so that the sound were not hindered, a small difference with and without:

too bad that obviously without the audio IC I can't test how they sound D:, the copper plate for the heatsink would still be missing... but we're proceeding! I completely forgot to connect the bt... (I thought it was all on the flat ), so here are tracks 10 and 11

I used a small connector from a dead eeepc rc battery and recovered the male from the speakers that had just arrived, soldered it onto two ground tracks so that it was nice and solid, cleaned everything and extended the cables from the male connector to the board, turned on the console with BT active and... the game works, no black screen!

 

[Stitches]

good news! The speakers arrived and were immediately installed. Seeing them "naked", the idea of leaving them like that didn't drive me crazy also because it's very easy for dust and ferrous residues to damage them, so I used a very fine and labile fabric so that the sound were not hindered, a small difference with and without:
View attachment 37142View attachment 37143
too bad that obviously without the audio IC I can't test how they sound D:, the copper plate for the heatsink would still be missing... but we're proceeding! I completely forgot to connect the bt... (I thought it was all on the flat ), so here are tracks 10 and 11
View attachment 37140View attachment 37141
I used a small connector from a dead eeepc rc battery and recovered the male from the speakers that had just arrived, soldered it onto two ground tracks so that it was nice and solid, cleaned everything and extended the cables from the male connector to the board, turned on the console with BT active and... the game works, no black screen!

That's a clever way to keep BT modular

 

[Luigid]

Small internal nitpicking for the BT, and addition of the second USB port, I thought it didn't work and I was cursing myself since it was too late to close the hole in the case, fortunately I was using a non-compatible USB stick... so everything is perfect! obviously they can't work in symbiosis so at the same time... maybe the good @Aurelio will give us a nice upgrade gift it would be nice to use two storages like the first for Wii games and the second for Gamecube maybe maybe not...
It's incredible that I still haven't received the audio chip and the copper plate...
I wanted to start the road for ave-hdmi, but unfortunately you have to wait for the flex from jlc for the Chinese calendar so you have to wait on this road too

 

[Luigid]

hi guys, some "small" updates:

1. copper plate arrived! (finally after two months...), cut and positioned, also placed a small thermal pad between the fan and it in order to dissipate some other degrees but compared to that homemade plate you can feel that the system works correctly and everything is cooler ! he probably remodulated the fan speed
   
   
   
2. obviously this wasn't all simple either, in fact the heatsink and the case wall on the right are not flush, in this case the plate if installed was not in contact with the heatsink so off to the dremler and soldering iron to remove and melt the plastic so so as not to corrupt the cooling system
   
   
3. So installed... it couldn't be programmed on the board since the 3.3v line was in communication with the audio chip, BT, wifi etc. then soldered onto a regular board and programmed... later transferred to the console. obviously it didn't work, redone the soldering of the flat on the board... nothing, checked the connector of the flat there were false contacts restored ok but nothing... I didn't like the pic how it was soldered and... audio lives!
   
   
4. second USB fixed correctly and used 36awg cables instead of the original 30awg, cleaned the circuit and fixed it
   
   
5. I had the power button and the normal one reversed (the plastic one) and took advantage of the audio to reverse them
   
   
6. having the digital audio removed the analog line (capacitors + integrated 8pin) which also made a difference when closing the case when touching the LCD board

I will also install a mini fuse 3.5amp + socket for safety on the battery line.
Everything looks beautiful and perfect ready to insert the last screw to complete the project... but! the green pms led flashes slowly even with the console off and there's no way to make it stop or make it change color... I opened a topic specifically... no shorts or anything strange, firmware tested and retested but unfortunately nothing...
currently it's the only inconvenience before you can close the console... even if hdmi conversion with gcvideo is planned

A big thanks @Xenii who is giving me a lot of support on discord for everything

 

[Luigid]

I first tried to swap the LF pic with the F pic but without success! the nice thing is that before the swap on the second pms created it worked perfectly and vice versa! therefore, as per the datasheet, the pics are obviously interchangeable except for the supply voltage.
so the only suspect was the BQ chip, reflowed and now it works perfectly!
I was going astray because even on the second pms card if I flashed the wiipms or ps2pms fw the LED did the same thing!
apart from the fact that for some reason my IDE is unable to compile the projects, I tried with the xc8 versions equal to xii but nothing... however with the hex it works and this is the important thing...
installed the small fuse with its fuse holder on the side of the battery

the LED that finally breathes as it should

I also wanted to install a small "killswitch" but thinking that having the batteries protected at a certain voltage will cut the connection between them and the pms... so I'm currently stuck with this idea.
In a few days the holidays in China will end and I will be able to order the AVHDMI from JLC... I'll do some tests to understand if it's more convenient than the HDMI or not. plus thanks to @Xenii I will replace the controller board with pads like his V3, they should guarantee more sensitivity to the keys

I obviously thank everyone who supported and made the project possible with their commitment to SW-HW development!

 

[Luigid]

small update, the buttons replaced by aliexpress.... they really suck, they wore out after not even 30 hours of use:

I found an nds lite as cheap as possible but grey... actually it's not very noticeable and I also like the contrast between the 3 colours, I was opting for other colors but I don't think the red example was actually good
so my advice is not to waste those 4-5 euros on aliexpress but opt for an original donor... I only paid 15 euros for mine shipped....
I think that in about 15 days I will receive the new joypad board + the gcvideo for hdmi mod...

 

[supertazon]

Awesome build!
Are you going to add a full HDMI out port?
Also, do you have a reference for the fabric you used to cover the speakers? It looks great!

 

[Xenii]

Looks fantastic. Much better than mine.
I'll definitively use that fabric. It protects the speakers and looks absolutely amazing. Great idea!

 

[Luigid]

Awesome build!
Are you going to add a full HDMI out port?
Also, do you have a reference for the fabric you used to cover the speakers? It looks great!

hi super I used a very thin fabric (when backlit you can see through it like the fabric of a mosquito net), for the HDMI I wanted to try the AVE HDMI, an HDMI output would be impossible at least via standard HDMI, it could be done via USB C but it would require too much work and the space inside the console is already limited (like the second USB I didn't choose to put a USB A but a USB C)

Looks fantastic. Much better than mine.
I'll definitively use that fabric. It protects the speakers and looks absolutely amazing. Great idea!

ahah no way! mine its a a copy

 

[Luigid]

hi guys here are the two and (I think) latest updates from yesterday and today:
yesterday I started with the controller board swap with the new xenii designer (installed on his V3)

Currently I haven't tried it thoroughly compared to the old one (over 30 hours of use and using it the keys started working at the slightest touch) with this one they are immediately responsive so I imagine it can only still improve but they are already perfect as they are!

the second and significant update consists in eliminating the VGA and installing the fuji flex (poor man variant with no money lol):

why "poor man variant with no money"?
like other things (example xii flex and controller board with hasal and not gold) ,
there were these variations:

1. flex always strictly 0.11mm instead of 0.12mm
   
   
2. normal SOP8 eeprom instead of the smd one for availability (25p40)
   
   
3. as above, the integrated circuit that generates 1.8v at 1.2... I wanted to use an ams1117 but then I remembered that the pms generates 1.15v... I read the fpga datasheet and I calmly read that the minimum voltage is 1v so..... integrated bypassed by a 0ohm resistor and the 1.8v pad connected to 1.15v of the pms
4. various components recovered from ko PC boards - remaining boards for this project, even the flex connectors are different and the ground connection has been modified. Since the PCB is very thin, reinforcements were installed near the flex and the ground directly on the board
   

Let's say goodbye to the now disconnected and useless VGA cables... the next challenge was that I thought too late that the Fuji Flex was in conflict with the Xii Flex! so I had to solder two flexes on the motherboard which was practically crazy... the only solution to not go crazy and be sure of success was to cut the xii flex on the side so that the pads were in contact with the external edge, once this was done move it slightly back compared to the fujiflex pads and solder everything... easy, right?

I thought the two systems were in conflict and instead they work! , the screen seems ok even as margins compared to VGA seem unchanged

the nice and positive thing is that now if it needs to be dismantled the screen and the back can be separated without problems and without cables! (xii approved lol) only I didn't know where to take the 5v and I didn't like the cable that went from the fuji to the controller board, but I didn't even want to remove the motherboard.... fortunately there is a bit of space on the side of the PCB with the power lines, I pass the cable with targeted welding and there it is, our 5v in position and perfectly hidden
I would say at the moment the project is completely finished, I also chose the external eeprom for ease of updating if another fw comes out, it would be nice to have an fw that allows the pic controller to modify the gcvideo menu or a method